3 men sought in holdup of Valu Food grocery

County police are looking for three men who forced customers and employees to the floor and robbed a Kings Contrivance grocery store late Monday night.

At 10:50 p.m. three masked men armed with semi-automatic handguns entered the Valu Food store in the 8600 block of Guilford Road and announced a robbery to the five employees and two customers, police said.

Everyone was ordered to the floor, except the manager and a cashier, who were forced to hand over an undetermined amount of cash. One of the suspects also took money from a customer, police said.

The men ran from the store and drove away in a small gray two-door car. Police said there were no injuries.

Police have not linked the robbery to any others but say they haven't ruled out the possibility.

"This happens from time to time," said Sgt. Pete D'Antuono, head of the Crimes Against Persons Unit. "But it's a relatively infrequent occurance" in Howard County.

Officials at Valu Food Supermarkets' Baltimore headquarters said nonuniformed security officers are assigned to the company's 17 stores but would not say whether security guards were at the Kings Contrivance store when it was robbed.

"There will be additional precautions taken in all of our stores," said Dina Carmel, vice president of finance for the 1,300-employee company.

The suspects were described as black. Two were said to be in their mid-20s, one about 6-feet tall, weighing 185 pounds and wearing blue jeans, the other wearing dark clothing and a hooded coat. The third man was described as having a medium build and wearing a dark blue jacket and pants.

Anyone with information should call Howard County police at 333-2260 or call the Metro Crime Stoppers Hotline at 276-8888 to qualify for a cash reward of up to $1,000.